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Armenians go to polls presidential elections shadowed by Kosovo independence
The Associated Press
February 19, 2008
YEREVAN, Armenia: Armenia's main opposition candidate alleged
widespread violations in a presidential election Tuesday shadowed
by tension with Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of
Nagorno-Karabakh.
The two top contenders among nine candidates were powerful Prime
Minister Serge Sarkisian and former President, Levon Ter-Petrosian,
vying to lead this poor South Caucasus nation, where more than a
quarter of the population lives in poverty despite some economic
progress over the last decade.
Election officials said more than 69 percent of eligible voters cast
ballots. Early preliminary results were expected late Tuesday. Monitors
from the Organization for Security and Cooperation are to issue a
report Wednesday on the conduct of the elections.
The economy and resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict have been
the main issues of the campaign.
But Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia on Sunday added
an element of uncertainty for Armenians, many of whom see clear
analogies between Kosovo and Nagorno-Karabakh -- a mountainous region
in Azerbaijan that has been under the control of ethnic-Armenian
forces since a 1994 cease-fire ended a bloody six-year conflict.
The two presidential candidates differ on how to handle
Nagorno-Karabakh.
Sarkisian, a native of the region, appears less likely to compromise
than Ter-Petrosian, who was forced to resign as president in 1998
after advocating concessions in the dispute.
Sarkisian, 53, was widely seen as the front-runner, having been groomed
by outgoing President Robert Kocharian. He has also received favorable
media coverage, and has the state bureaucracy at his service, as well
as the momentum of his government's agenda.
Ter-Petrosian, 63, hoped to return to the presidency, which he occupied
after Armenia won independence in the Soviet collapse.
Armenia, with a population of about 3.2 million, is located at
the juncture of the energy-rich Caspian Sea region and southern
Europe. This and its proximity to Iran make it of strategic importance
for the West and Russia.
The United States -- where much of Armenia's diaspora lives -- has
poured some $1.7 billion in aid into Armenia since 1991, encouraging
economic and political liberalization.
Casting his vote in central Yerevan, Ter-Petrosian asserted there
had been "hundreds, thousands of violations."
"According to my information, very dirty things are being done,"
he said.
Ter-Petrosian spokesman Arman Museian said dozens of his supporters
had been beaten by pro-government activists on Tuesday, and he alleged
widespread cases of ballot-stuffing and vote-buying.
A Ter-Petrosian activist who monitored voting in Abovian, a town
outside Yerevan, said she was beaten early Tuesday by a group of
people who identified themselves as Sarkisian campaign activists
after she tried to protest violations at a polling station.
"It is not an election, it's a seizure of power," said Larisa Torosian,
who had bruises around her left eye.
Sarkisian has denied the allegations: "It's about conducting this
election well so that trust in the results is high," he said after
casting his ballot.
A candidate has to secure more than 50 percent of the vote to avoid
a runoff.
Retired artist Gevorg Oganesian, 79, said he voted for Sarkisian
because of economic improvements under his government.
"He has already accomplished so much -- he has raised our pensions;
if he could do that, he will do everything else," Oganesian said
after he emerged from a polling station in central Yerevan.
Other voters, however, saw Ter-Petrosian as offering a chance to
return to the optimistic days following independence.
"He was our first president, he gave us independence. He wants his
people to live a normal life," said Dzhon Karapetian, 30, a water
polo player who voted for Ter-Petrosian.
The Nagorno-Karabakh dispute is one of four so-called "frozen
conflicts" in the former Soviet Union following separatist wars. Many
fear Kosovo's example may encourage the rebel regions and spark
new fighting.
The Kremlin -- outraged by some Western countries' recognition of
Kosovo's independence -- has been more neutral in the dispute over
Nagorno-Karabakh than in the breakaway Georgian regions of Abkhazia
and South Ossetia and Moldova's rebel province of Trans-Dniester,
with which it has close ties.
Armenia is eligible for millions more in U.S. aid, but the money is
contingent upon political reforms, and a questionable election could
jeopardize Washington's support.
The Associated Press
February 19, 2008
YEREVAN, Armenia: Armenia's main opposition candidate alleged
widespread violations in a presidential election Tuesday shadowed
by tension with Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of
Nagorno-Karabakh.
The two top contenders among nine candidates were powerful Prime
Minister Serge Sarkisian and former President, Levon Ter-Petrosian,
vying to lead this poor South Caucasus nation, where more than a
quarter of the population lives in poverty despite some economic
progress over the last decade.
Election officials said more than 69 percent of eligible voters cast
ballots. Early preliminary results were expected late Tuesday. Monitors
from the Organization for Security and Cooperation are to issue a
report Wednesday on the conduct of the elections.
The economy and resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict have been
the main issues of the campaign.
But Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia on Sunday added
an element of uncertainty for Armenians, many of whom see clear
analogies between Kosovo and Nagorno-Karabakh -- a mountainous region
in Azerbaijan that has been under the control of ethnic-Armenian
forces since a 1994 cease-fire ended a bloody six-year conflict.
The two presidential candidates differ on how to handle
Nagorno-Karabakh.
Sarkisian, a native of the region, appears less likely to compromise
than Ter-Petrosian, who was forced to resign as president in 1998
after advocating concessions in the dispute.
Sarkisian, 53, was widely seen as the front-runner, having been groomed
by outgoing President Robert Kocharian. He has also received favorable
media coverage, and has the state bureaucracy at his service, as well
as the momentum of his government's agenda.
Ter-Petrosian, 63, hoped to return to the presidency, which he occupied
after Armenia won independence in the Soviet collapse.
Armenia, with a population of about 3.2 million, is located at
the juncture of the energy-rich Caspian Sea region and southern
Europe. This and its proximity to Iran make it of strategic importance
for the West and Russia.
The United States -- where much of Armenia's diaspora lives -- has
poured some $1.7 billion in aid into Armenia since 1991, encouraging
economic and political liberalization.
Casting his vote in central Yerevan, Ter-Petrosian asserted there
had been "hundreds, thousands of violations."
"According to my information, very dirty things are being done,"
he said.
Ter-Petrosian spokesman Arman Museian said dozens of his supporters
had been beaten by pro-government activists on Tuesday, and he alleged
widespread cases of ballot-stuffing and vote-buying.
A Ter-Petrosian activist who monitored voting in Abovian, a town
outside Yerevan, said she was beaten early Tuesday by a group of
people who identified themselves as Sarkisian campaign activists
after she tried to protest violations at a polling station.
"It is not an election, it's a seizure of power," said Larisa Torosian,
who had bruises around her left eye.
Sarkisian has denied the allegations: "It's about conducting this
election well so that trust in the results is high," he said after
casting his ballot.
A candidate has to secure more than 50 percent of the vote to avoid
a runoff.
Retired artist Gevorg Oganesian, 79, said he voted for Sarkisian
because of economic improvements under his government.
"He has already accomplished so much -- he has raised our pensions;
if he could do that, he will do everything else," Oganesian said
after he emerged from a polling station in central Yerevan.
Other voters, however, saw Ter-Petrosian as offering a chance to
return to the optimistic days following independence.
"He was our first president, he gave us independence. He wants his
people to live a normal life," said Dzhon Karapetian, 30, a water
polo player who voted for Ter-Petrosian.
The Nagorno-Karabakh dispute is one of four so-called "frozen
conflicts" in the former Soviet Union following separatist wars. Many
fear Kosovo's example may encourage the rebel regions and spark
new fighting.
The Kremlin -- outraged by some Western countries' recognition of
Kosovo's independence -- has been more neutral in the dispute over
Nagorno-Karabakh than in the breakaway Georgian regions of Abkhazia
and South Ossetia and Moldova's rebel province of Trans-Dniester,
with which it has close ties.
Armenia is eligible for millions more in U.S. aid, but the money is
contingent upon political reforms, and a questionable election could
jeopardize Washington's support.